Conservative Republican Ben Lange, a lawyer from Independence who ran for Congress last year, has endorsed presidential candidate Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania.

In a statement today, Lange said: “Conservatives are hungry for a candidate with the ability to articulate conservative principles, apply those principles to the serious economic problems we now face, and ultimately lead a national conservative movement.

“Senator Santorum has proven he can lead on the national stage, having fought for and won key battles for the conservative movement. As my fellow Iowans learn more about Senator Santorum and all that he has achieved, I believe they will find the candidate they have been looking for.”

On Wednesday, Santorum got the endorsement of abortion opponent Kim Lehman, a former leader of Iowa Right to Life and a member of the Republican National Committee.

Lange lost the race in the 1st Congressional District against Democratic U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley of Waterloo, despite a flood of money unleashed on attacking Braley. The American Future Fund, a political organization that can keep its funding sources a secret, poured more than $1 million, primarily in television advertising, into trying to defeat the Democrat, considered a rising star.

American Future Fund’s founder, Nick Ryan, is one of Santorum’s Iowa advisers.

Here’s how the Santorum campaign described Lange:

Lange gained national attention in 2010 by winning a four-way Republican primary in IA-1 by 30 points, the largest margin of victory in modern times.

Lange nearly pulled off one of the biggest political upsets of the 2010 midterms, falling a mere 4,200 votes short against (Braley) in a heavily Democratic district and without national Republican assistance.

A lifelong Iowan, Lange was the first member of his family to graduate college and now owns his own legal practice in Iowa.